Daniel Radcliffe Continues To Strike ‘Gold’ With New Role

You have to hand it to Daniel Radcliffe. The man really knows how to build an intelligent and adult career as a film star, especially coming off playing one of pop culture’s most recognizable characters.

Other actors have done much less, even after starting from less precarious spots as playing Harry Potter, and after a string of challenging roles that are already garnering serious praise, the 24-year-old actor is adding another intriguing part to his resumé.

[ video unavailable on this device ]

BBC Films (via The Playlist) announced Wednesday (October 30) that Radcliffe is reteaming with his “The Woman In Black” director James Watkins for a true-life retelling of the rivalry between two English Olympians.

“Gold” follows Sebastian Coe and Steve Ovett, with Radcliffe set to play the former. Coe and Ovett were teammates but also great competitors who battled back and forth for supremacy and collected a boatload of medals in the process.

[ video unavailable on this device ]

The nature of the project gives a small glimpse into how Radcliffe is choosing his roles, each one interesting in its own right. For “Gold,” he would reteam with Watkins, which is not terribly surprising because their work on “Woman In Black” created an unlikely hit.

But it’s also a sign that Radcliffe is choosing his projects based on what works for him as opposed to what others might see as a more logical road to stardom. This isn’t a super hero role or an action movie, the more bankable genres. He picks movies like “Horns” and “Kill Your Darlings” and now “Gold” for reasons that go specifically against what is expected, and that appears to be his secret to post-Potter success.